Balsams Wilderness Ski Getaways

Perhaps the best part about skiing at The Balsams Wilderness is knowing where you'll spend the night.

When the lifts close and evening falls in Dixville Notch you'll head for The Balsams, a grand old resort hotel deep in the heart of New Hampshire's north country. It can accommodate up to 400 guests, and you can be thankful that you will be one of them. This feeling will be accentuated as dusk deepens and the lights of the hotel are reflected in a mountain lake. Against the dark backdrop of the notch's craggy heights, they are a welcoming sight beneath the cold winter sky.

The skiing here is only one aspect of what is really an old-fashioned resort hotel experience, where service, amenities, fine dining, and graciously-appointed rooms and suites combine to provide you a relaxing and rewarding experience.

With 16 trails and glades for all abilities, a terrain park, two triple chairs, 1,000 feet of vertical and 80% snowmaking coverage, the resort doesn't stint on the alpine amenity, but you'll find that it's part and parcel of simply being here. The lack of development around the mountain doesn't merely add to the remote feeling of Dixville Notch, it's another indication that you are far removed from the hustle and bustle of whatever you do "down country."

If the hotel complex seems huge at first, the 15,000 acre private estate on which it stands (larger than Manhattan Island) soon places it in perspective for you. This land, which varies more than 1,000 feet in elevation, is home to an extensive cross-country trail network. Snowshoeing and ice skating are popular here, and there's a fine natural history program, too.